We officially begin our trek as we leave Nagdi and head towards the village of Chamje. The journey takes about 6-7 hours along the classic Annapurna trail covered with abundant rhododendron trees. We trek along the steep and slippery path running through paddy fields, and tiny Tibetan influenced settlements into Chamje. Overnight stay at Chamje.

After a wholesome breakfast, we continue on our venture to Tilicho with today’s destination being Dharapani. The trail begins with criss-cross paths along the Marsyangdi river until we reach a suspension bridge above the Marshyangdi river. After crossing the bridge, the trail slowly starts getting uphill and steep towards Tal. Tal marks the entering of Manang valley. En route, you can observe the fields filled with barley, rice, potato, and pine forests as we pass the village of Khotro. The trail further descends towards the woody forests until it reaches a suspension bridge. After passing through the settlements of Karte and Nache town, we finally reach Dharapani where we will be staying overnight.

On the fourth day, we head towards Chame after some quick check of the ACAP permits by the officials. We first walk up to the village of Baggarchap, passing through a lush forest, hemlock, maple, and oak trees. We further continue along the trail passing through the woody forests into Danaque. Upon reaching Danaque, you can find abundant apple orchards all around! The trail then starts getting zig-zag with a lot of winding turns and covered with lush rhododendron trees. After walking for 2 to 3 hours along this trail, we finally make it to Chame which provides a breathtaking view of the Lamjung and Annapurna II/IV mountains! Overnight stay at Chame.

The journey today starts with an uphill climb past the carved mani stones into the village of Telekhu. The trails to Pisang are relatively comfortable and are lowly inclined as we pass through the thick pine forests. The path also blesses you with some of the best views of the Annapurna Himalayan range. As we near Pisang, we exit the pine-covered forests to make our way into the Paunga Dada rock face. We continue alongside the ridge for another two hours or so. En route, you can find various prayer flags and stone carvings. After 6-7 hours of journey, we finally reach Pisang and stay overnight.

Our journey starts with an uphill climb as we pass through the abundant pine trees leading to a small lake. The trail then diverges towards a light settlement covered with painted mandalas and waving prayer flags. The landscapes slowly start contrasting from verdant meadows to summer pastures and rocky terrains as we near Manang. After a few hours, the trail climbs up a steep ridge along the banks of Marshyangdi River and eventually brings us to the settlement of Ngawal. Furthermore, we pass through some additional pine forests and farming terraces finally arriving at Manang. En Route we also pass through Braga, where we visit the ancient monastery soaked with rich cultural history. Overnight stay at Manang.

Since we pass above the 3000m mark, we need to let our body acclimatise to the lofty altitude. Thus we take a rest day to help acclimatise ourselves and also relieve some muscular stress after many days of an uphill hike. To make the day more productive, we will explore around Manang. The place features some of the most exquisite views of the Gangapurna Icefall and the glacial lake close to it. You can also choose to explore the other major attractions such as Khangsur village, Kecho lake or Milarepa cave. Overnight stay at Manang.

Today we begin the trek early after a wholesome breakfast as we head towards the foot of the Tilicho peak. The journey commences with a descent from Manang and crossing the Jharsing Khola using the suspension bridge. Then we continue on the trail until we reach the village of Khangsar. In Khangsar, you can find small settlements and monasteries covered with waving prayer flags and mandala textures. From Khangsar, the path gets more challenging due to the steep incline. The trail features abundant juniper and buckthorn shrubs with few streams occasionally coming into view. After some hours of weary climb, you will finally reach a crest situated at an altitude of 4,650m and covered with multi-colored prayer flags. An hour of walking along the zig-zag trails eventually leads us to the Tilicho Base Camp, where we will be staying overnight.

Today is the main highlight day of the trek where we visit the lake of Tilicho. We start early walking along a side valley along the steep moraines. En route, we catch a magnificent glimpse of the surrounding icy peaks, namely Tarke Gyang, Gangapurna, and the Khangsar Kang. After a few hours of walking along the steep incline, we finally reach the mystical lake of Tilicho. More often the lake appears frozen due to the freezing temperatures, and you can see the mirrored image of the mountains on its solid surface. After spending some well deserved time on the lake, we finally head back down to Siri Kharkha for spending the night.

We start today’s journey descending as we head towards Lather. We pass through the alpine vistas and declining vegetation. The trail then transforms into a gradual uphill climb as we move through abundant scrub juniper and alpine shrubs into Yak Kharka. From Yak Kharka, the trail diverts eastwards along the banks of Jarsang Khola and descends steeply onto a wooden bridge connecting the banks of the river. An hour or so walk after crossing the bridge leads us to Lather. En route, you can catch a glimpse of the unique Himalayan wildlife. Overnight stay at Lather.

On the 11th day of the trek, we start walking early after a quick breakfast. We walk along the trail until we reach Thorung Khola. We cross the river and continue walking along the path. If you’re lucky, you can catch some glimpses of the Himalayan deer grazing about. An hour or so of walking along the route eventually takes us into Phedi where we will stop for some quick refreshments. The trail then starts getting steeply inclined, and an hour of walking along this trail finally leads us to the High camp at 4800m. We then rest ourselves for the big day tomorrow and stay overnight at Thorong High Camp.

It is the most challenging day of the entire trip. We need to walk through steeply inclined trails and lofty altitudes with occasional heavy winds. Hence we start the journey with an early wake-up call. The path from the high camp to Thorung La Pass is usually rocky and quite steep, so it demands extreme physical endurance. Also, the high altitude brings unwanted fatigue and tends to slow you down. After a few hours of walking, we finally reach the pass situated at 5416m above sea level. Here you can get a sense of pure satisfaction when you reach the top. We then continue on our venture as we start descending to the other side of the moraine. The way down is very steep, and if you have trekking poles, they prove as a blessing. After 2-3 hours of walking, we finally reach the holy shrine of Muktinath. Here you can offer your prayers to the sacred deity and also shower in the well-famed 108 showers of the temple.

As the trip nears its end, we start heading towards Jomsom to catch a bus back to Pokhara. The journey begins after a quick breakfast as we start trekking along the dusty hills of Jomson. The route descends along winding twisting and turns until we reach Kagbeni. From Kagbeni there are two diversions, one leads to Jomsom and the other one to Upper Mustang. We continue walking towards Jomsom. The path from Kagbeni to Jomsom is usually level with fantastic backdrop views of the Nilgiri and Dhaulagiri mountains. After 4-5 hours of trek, we finally reach the settlement of Jomsom where we spend the night.

The trek officially comes to an end as we drive back to Pokhara. The journey takes about 6-7 hours and is a scenic one with the verdant landscapes and fierce flowing streams blessing your eyes! We pass along the settlements of Tatopani, Beni, Kusma eventually into Pokhara. Upon reaching Pokhara, our representatives will escort you back to the hotel. After checking in, you can spend the rest of the evening in any one of the local pubs of Pokhara, sharing your travel stories with fellow travellers.

We head back home after 14 days of absolute blissful trekking experience. On the final day, our representatives will drop you off at the Tourist bus stop of Pokhara from where you will catch a tourist bus back to the capital. The journey takes about 6 hours with occasional stops on the way.